Indiscriminate Firing Kills 2 Tibetans, Maims 10 in Serta County

Two Tibetan men died after security forces opened fire on protesters on 24 January 2012 at Serta County (Ch: Seda) in Kardze Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan Province.

Dawa Dakpa, a 33-yr-old resident of Serwa village and another unidentified Tibetan hailing from Hoen-Dza-Wo village were shot dead by Chinese security forces, according to the information received by TCHRD.

About 10 Tibetans were seriously injured and some 40 others have been arrested, a source told TCHRD.

The protest occurred in Serta town at around 10 am (Tibet Local Time) on 24 January 2012. Over 300 Tibetans gathered and shouted slogans calling for the return of His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Tibetan freedom. Later, a large number of security forces arrived on the scene and started beating and kicking the protesters. The Tibetan protesters resisted the beatings and continued to shout slogans. The security forces then began firing indiscriminately on the unarmed protesters, according to the source.

Chinese security forces are now being deployed in and around Serta County. Restaurants, hotels and shops have been ordered to shut down signaling more crackdown in future.